David Hockney auction record broken twice in one night

The record auction price for a work by David Hockney has been broken twice in one evening as two pieces fetched more than 40.1 million dollars (£29.6m).

The celebrated British artist's landmark 1990 masterpiece Pacific Coast Highway And Santa Monica went under the hammer for 28.5 million dollars (£21m) - more than twice the earlier benchmark - during a sale at Sotheby's New York on Wednesday.

The record sale came shortly after a 1978 work titled Piscine de Medianoche (Paper Pool 30) was snapped up for 11.7 million dollars (£8.6m) - around 30,000 dollars (£22,000) more than the previous record set by his Yorkshire landscape, Woldgate Woods, at Sotheby's in 2016.

It was the first time either piece had been put up for auction, Sotheby's said.

#AuctionUpdate: California Dreamin'! David Hockney's 'Pacific Coast Highway and Santa Monica' soars to $28.5 million, establishing a new record for the artist at auction for the second time this evening pic.twitter.com/hvKbm4T3xW

Capturing the view from Hockney's home in the Hollywood Hills, Pacific Coast Highway And Santa Monica was described as a "true triumph of his singular vision" by David Galperin, head of the Contemporary Art Evening Auction.

The piece is seen as an important work for its time, created when artists were turning away from paint towards other mediums such as photography and installation art.

In his autobiography Hockney said the view would be immediately recognisable to anyone who had been on his driveway.

#AuctionUpdate: 'Piscine de Medianoche (Paper Pool 30)' by David Hockney makes a splash! Taken from the vantage point of the diving board after nightfall, the 1978 work sells for $11.7 million, and achieves a new record for the artist at auction. pic.twitter.com/XBD3e1hXPV